sport

noun · verb

Simple meaning

Any activity that uses physical exertion or skills competitively under a set of rules that is not based on aesthetics.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

spawrt

US device voice

IPA pronunciation (US)

ˈspɔɹt

This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

noun

countableuncountable
Any activity that uses physical exertion or skills competitively under a set of rules that is not based on aesthetics.
countable
A person who exhibits either good or bad sportsmanship.
countable
Somebody who behaves or reacts in an admirably good-natured manner, e.g. to being teased or to losing a game; a good sport.
countable
A toy; a plaything; an object of mockery.
uncountable
Gaming for money as in racing, hunting, or fishing.
Term of endearment used by an adult for a child, usually a boy.

verb

Play boisterously
intransitive
To amuse oneself, to play.
intransitive
To mock or tease, treat lightly, toy with.
Wear or display in an ostentatious or proud manner
“She was sporting a new hat.”
transitive
To display; to have as a notable feature.
reflexive
To divert; to amuse; to make merry.

Word at a Glance

Difficulty: A2 · Elementary
Frequency: Very Common
Typical Use: Everyday English

Word Aura™

How this word commonly comes across.

Aura for this meaning

This meaning: Any activity that uses physical exertion or skills competitively under a set of rules that is not based on aesthetics.

Used this way, sport is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.

Emotional tone: Neutral
Formality: Neutral
Intensity: Not strongly marked
How common: Moderately common
Connotation: Matter-of-fact
Usage feel: Neutral and straightforward

Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.

More ways to use sport

“She was sporting a new hat.”verb

Common Patterns and Combinations

How this word naturally appears with others.

good sportsport fishingspectator sportsport coatsport psychologyfavorite sportpopular sportnational sport

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Word Family

Related forms, grouped by how they connect.

Inflected forms

Grammatical variations of the same word.

sportingadjectiveInflected form
Relating to or used in sports.

Compound terms

Established multiword terms.

sporting chancenounCompound term
A reasonable probability of success.
sporting dognounCompound term
A dog trained to work with sportsmen when they hunt with guns.
sporting goodsnounCompound term
Sports equipment sold as a commodity.
sporting housenounCompound term
A building where prostitutes are available.
sporting ladynounCompound term
A woman who engages in sexual intercourse for money.
sporting lifenounCompound term
Active interest in gambling on sports events.

Related words

Connected by subject or meaning, not by word formation.

sportswearnounRelated term
Attire worn for sport or for casual wear.
sportsmannounRelated term
Someone who engages in sports.

More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin

Synonyms

noun

Sense: any activity that uses physical exertion

sportsmanDated

verb

Sense: play boisterously

rompcavortRare

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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.